Avengers: Dark Reign
by Cap10FroggerGuy
Summary: WARNING: THIS TAKES PLACE POST-ENDGAME, SO SPOILERS AHEAD The Avengers have won. Thanos is vanquished, the world is safe once more. Even the returning Red Skull, who attempted to reform HYDRA, has been defeated. But darkness lurks in the heart of the Avengers, and their incorruptible leader may be hiding a deadly secret
1. Prologue

**So this story takes place post-Endgame. There were a few changes, such as Cap getting Natasha back from Vormir when he returned the Soul Stone. Other stuff will be made clear by the story itself. Be sure to leave a review!**

Five long years. That was how long it hade been since the Mad Titian, Thanos, came to Vormir. Five years since he sacrificed his daughter to gain the Soul Stone. Five years, since he had been set free. And that's how long it had taken him to return home.

Red Skull considered kissing the ground, then dismissed the thought. It would make him look a fool. And foolish was not a word one used to describe the former leader of HYDRA.

Soon to be the leader of HYDRA once again.

"Soldier!" He called. "Identify yourself!" It had taken some time to locate this HYDRA base, but Skull was patient. A lifetime on Vormir had taught him that much.

"Herr Schmidt!" A sentry gasped, coming out from behind a rock. "We had assumed you were dead?"

Skull scoffed. "As though I could die? Idiot. Now, who commands this base? Is it Herr Strucker?"

The soldier looked sheepish. "No sir. Struker is dead."

Disappointing. "Herr Zola?"

"Also dead."

"Dr. List? Or perhaps Dr. Whitehall?"

"Both dead. The Avengers and SHIELD have hunted the head of HYDRA and cut them off beyond repair."

Skull tsked. "When one is cut off, two more shall take it's place. This is the motto of HYDRA! For proof, this base. Who commands it?"

"Herr Zemo."

Skull cocked his head. "Who is this... Zemo?"

"He managed to turn the Avengers against each other, but his victory was incomplete. He felt that, perhaps, the ashes of HYDRA had the keys to solidify his revenge."

"You know much about your commander."

The sentry shrugged. "There are very few of us."

Skull chuckled. "Soon, there will be more. Come, take me to this Zemo. Perhaps together we can enact his revenge on the Avengers, and mine... on Captain America!"


	2. Chapter 1

As the Quinjet hovered above the base below, Cap grabbed his gear and prepared to brief his troops.

"Look alive, fellas!" He exclaimed. "We're here at the last know HYDRA location on the planet, courtesy of SHIELD. Seems Red Skull returned to Earth sometime after the Blip and set up shop again."

"Wouldn't be the first dumb thing he's done." Natasha said with a smirk.

"Hopefully it'll be his last. He's holed up in there with about 50 troops and, get this, Zemo."

"Wait, Zemo?" Sam Wilson asked. "As in the dude who pulled the whole "Barnes bombed the UN" Zemo?" He looked to the side. "No offense... Barnes."

"None taken... Wilson." Bucky replied with slightly gritted teeth.

"Knock it off, you two." Cap chided. "Yes, that Helmut Zemo. Broke out of custody sometime after the Snap, and seems to be interested in revitalizing HYDRA. We're here to put that dream in the trash. Any questions?"

A teenager in a red and black suit raised his hand.

"Yes, Parker?" Cap indicated the hand raiser.

"Umm, yeah see this is my first actual Avengers mission, so could I grab a souvenir?"

Cap blinked. "A... souvenir?"

Spidey nodded.

"I mean, if it isn't alien, deadly, or glowing a bright color, I guess so."

Falcon tsked. "Cap, at that rate, he's gonna get nothing but a goon helmet! And those are terribly tacky."

"Better tacky and safe than another block in New York blown up, eh Wilson?"

"As long as it DEFINITELY isn't the block where your HOUSE is, Barnes."

Cap glared at them. "Just make sure it won't cause damage to wherever you're planning on storing this... Souvenir."

Spidey nodded vigorously. "Yes Mr. Captain Rogers America. Sir."

Cap turned so the kid wouldn't see his chuckle. "Alright, we're in position. Move out!"

The back of the Quinjet opened, and the quintet lept out. Cap, Natasha, and Spidey popped out parachutes, while Falcon carried Bucky down on his wings.

"Why am I holding you again?"

"Cause we're a duo."

"I don't wanna be doing this duo!"

"Boys, heads in the game." Natasha's voice came over the comms.

On queue, the two opened fire on the barricades near the main wall, opening up a space for the newly landed Black Widow to roll in safely. Three Widow bites, a well shot bullet, and three kicks cleared the wall.

"Border guards are down." She said.

"Already?" Cap asked, finishing his descent. "Nice work."

"Uh, guys, there's guys in the courtyard AND THEY HAVE GUNS!" Spidey yelped.

As he dodged the shots, Steve and Natasha looked at each other, nodded, and leapt over the side, taking out foes in unison. After a few seconds, the courtyard was clear.

"Aw, thanks." Spidey said, webbing one guy they didn't get to a wall.

"Alright, outside clear, going in." Cap called. "Sam, drop off Bucky and take out the windows."

"Glad to be rid of this guy." Falcon said, dropping him.

"Sam?"

"I'm on it, Cap."

As the team continued onwards, Cap gave them their orders. "Bucky, Spidey, scout inside, find Zemo, incapacitate him. Minimum casualties, if possible. Nat, you and I will head for the server bank, split up, and locate Skull."

"On it Steve." Bucky said, jogging towards an entrance with Spidey on his heels.

"Alright." Cap tightened his shield. "Let's track down a Skull."


	3. Chapter 2

**Ok, quick note: I am a hopeless CapTasha shipper. So if you aren't into that, or Heaven forbid, ship SteveSharon, here's your warning. Also, in this version, I am treating the Tesseract and the Cosmic Cube as two separate entities.**

Cap and Nat delved into the fortress, occasionally knocking out enemy soldiers that happened to come upon them.

"So can I ask an obvious question?" Nat asked.

"You already have." Steve replied.

Natasha rolled her eyes. "Why go through the whole process of reassembling the team? Why not just call in Carol or something?"

"You know what she's like, "sorry I'm gonna be out I've gotta punch a few asteroids."" A sentry attempted to shoot them. Cap put his shield in front of Natasha, who shot the goon with an Icer. "And I can respect that." He continued, barely missing a beat.

"That only answered half my question." She replied, cooly.

Cap frowned, in thought. "Well, I think the world needs the Avengers as a symbol. An idea for how the earth will always have defenders, both visible and invisible."

"Mhmm." Nat nodded.

They continued forward in relative silence for a moment.

"You also couldn't get a hold of Thor, could you."

Steve threw his hands in the air. "Really Romanoff? Like you could get a hold of him?"

"Sure. Give me three days and a raven."

Steve chuckled. "I don't doubt you."

They came to a junction. "Alright, signage points to the computer banks being that way. Head down, disable these banks, and connect the crash to all HYDRA bases. With any luck, we could crash their whole system."

"Don't need luck, you have me."

"I'm counting on it," he replied with a grin.

"Steve, would you stop flirting and get the job done!?" Bucky's voice came in through the comms.

"Hold your arm, Barnes, the job's almost done." Nat replied. She winked at Cap. "See you in a min."

"And you'd better mean that this time."

Cap then took off at a jog, and soon burst through a set of doors and came upon the Red Skull staring at a glowing box.

"The game's up, Skull." Cap said. "You'd think that after 70 years on Vormir you'd have learned not to meddle with the cosmic."

"Oh but Captain," The Skull grinned, "On the contrary, it taught me to have a greater appreciation for the otherworldly."

...

The Black Widow was looking through the computers, and suddenly found a rather... alarming file.

"Barnes, get to Cap." She began to delete the files and rush out of the room. "NOW!"

...

"What are you doing?" Cap asked warily.

"Changing history." The Skull laughed. "Behold, the Cosmic Cube!" He lifted a glowing block into the air. "Created from a mixture of Vibranium and the dust of those killed by the snap. Quantum energy and shards from the destroyed Infinity stones. Capable of altering the fabric of reality itself!"

Cap became very pale, and started to collapse. "What... are you?"

"I am erasing you from history." Skull laughed. "And as you fall, HYDRA shall rise!"

As Cap began to black out, he saw the door slam open, and Bucky and Natasha stormed through, guns blazing. The last thing he saw was an explosion as the Cube was shattered to pieces by a direct shot.


	4. Chapter 3

**Spoilers for the newest season of Agents of SHIELD and Spider-Man Far From Home ahead. You've been warned.**

Steve shook his head, clearing it. The memories of the day the Avengers finally defeated Skull were bouncing about his head, and he had a job to do.

"I am so glad that I'm not the one giving a speech." Natasha griped.

"Well you're not that bad at em." He replied.

She shrugged. "At least Clint is enjoying his time hamming it up the audience." As if on queue, a laugh came from the audience. Turning and looking at him, Nat let out a small gasp. "Oh come on Steve! You of all people should know how to wear a tie!"

"Nat, I'm pretty sure this is is regulation-"

"Nonsense, just let me-" Som tugging and adjustment took place. "There."

Steve blinked. "I don't really see any difference-"

"Shh, that's your queue, Star-Spangled man." Natasha interrupted him and pushed him onstage, stifling a chuckle.

"And now, the man of the hour: Captain Steve Rogers!" Clint Barton shouted as Cap stumbled onto the stage, then collected himself and strolled forward. Waiting for the cheering to settle down, he tested the mic.

"Thank you. In all honesty, thank you all for coming here." Cap began. "I never asked for this position, and frankly wasn't sure why they offered it. After all, directorship of the largest paramilitary international peacekeeping force on the planet is not the position one would offer to a former war criminal." He paused to let the audience chuckle.

"Still, being the Director of SHIELD is going to be a huge responsibility. Our world has been turned upside down in the last five years. Hopefully, things can now go back to a sort of normal. But no matter what the future holds, I'll make sure to always remember that I serve the greater good of humanity, and that together, as one team, we can rebuild the bonds that bind us all, and rise united in a new world, where words are the weapons, not guns, and where we raise a shield to protect the innocent, not a sword to strike down those we disagree with. Today begins a new day! And no Ultron, no Accords, and no Mad Titan can take that away!"

Very loud cheers. Cap gave the crowd a bow and a salute, and cleared the stage for the next presenter.

After the speeches were done, the majority of the guests convened in the lobby of the auditorium for refreshments.

"Gotta say," Steve noted, entering the room with the other Avengers, "This is the first actual party I've attended since Ultron."

Sam laughed. "You mean to say my birthday didn't count?"

"Sam, we spent that on the run in a shady bar." Natasha noted, nabbing a chocolate strawberry off a passing plate.

"Pfft, I totally think that counted." He replied.

Steve walked over to the area where Doctor Stephen Strange and King Tchalla were conversing. "Hello gentlemen." He said. "How goes your parts of the world?"

"I'm afraid I'm going to be out of the dimension for a bit." Strange said. "After the rather odd disappearance of Ms. Maximof I've decided to investigate."

"Wanda's gone missing? That's the first I've heard of it."

Strange nodded. "You may have noticed how distraught she was after the death of Vision. I fear the worst."

"Good luck to you, Doctor." He said. "And you, Tchalla?"

The Black Panther of Wakanda sighed. "My return to kingship is going... slowly. Despite both Okoye and Mbaku ruling well in my stead, the elders are taking their time in coming to a decision to reinstate me."

"I'm sorry to hear it." Steve replied. "How's your family holding up?"

"My mother is extremely glad that I am alive." Tchalla said. "And my sister... well..."

Steve raised an eyebrow.

"I'd duck." Tchalla advised. The two men did so as Strange sighed and created a shield. Several breadsticks flew out of nowhere and hit the area where they had been standing.

"Brother! Think fast, take these and run!" Shuri yelled from the other side of the room, giving Spidey a fist bump.

"She's adjusted well." Steve noted.

"A bit too well." Tchalla admitted, cracking a slight smile.

Natasha was on the other side of the room, talking to a muscular bald man and a shorter brunette woman in the corner.

"I wouldn't worry about your squad getting dismantled." She was saying. "Steve's spoken highly of your exploits, and we could always use a black ops SHIELD team."

"Ah, Mack, Daisy." The man himself said, shaking their hands. "Natasha is, as usual, understating. I have high respect for your work, and have no wish to interfere in your leadership." He face became more somber. "I do wish I had been able to see Coulson again. He was a good man."

Daisy nodded, sadness in her eyes. "He was. He became more than a leader to us, he was family."

Steve nodded. "I know what you mean."

"Trouble is, we've been having run-ins with a doppelgänger of his..." Mack added darkly. "Guy isn't the coolest of customets."

"Geez, we deal with aliens, you deal with this weirdness." Natasha said with a grin. "Like the man said, keep up the good work."

Sam and Bucky were both near the snacks, talking to various guests and occasionally trading jabs, while Peter was now talking excitedly to Strange with Michelle next to him. Having realized the party would have food, he opted to bring her as a date. She didn't mind.

"And then he acted like he was summoning this huge elemental monster thingy, but it wasn't that bad, because I was engaging the drones-"

"I smacked one with a mace." Michelle added deadpan.

"So I used my spider sense-"

"Peter tingle."

"I am NOT calling it that, Michelle. Spider sense is cooler."

"At least it's on brand." She noted.

"That too-"

Strange spotted an opening. "Excuse me, I believe Wong is calling me."

"Sure thing!" Peter said chipperly. "See ya Mr. Dr. Strange! Sir!"

After a couple of hours, the party began to wind down. Bored, Natasha started tapping at her watch. Suddenly, it got an alert.

"You got it too?" Cap asked. She nodded.

Steve grinned. "Looks like the fun is over. Time to get to work."


	5. Chapter 4

"Bring her about!" Steve called from the bridge. Moving slowly, the Helicarrier hovered over the mountain pass.

"Alright, strike teams one and two, move in." He ordered. "Avengers, what's your status?"

Natasha's voice came in over the comms. "Ready to flush em out, Director."

Steve sighed. He still wasn't used to being called that, even after six months. "Alright. Let's take out this Ten Rings stronghold." Shaking his head, he said to himself, "You'd think that after their Mandarin was revealed to be a phony they'd have given up."

"What's that, sir?" An agent asked.

Steve waved his hand. "Nothing, Agent. Carry on." Automatically, he began to fidget.

_I was never one to not be in the field. _He thought. _If you're gonna do something, it's best to do it yourself._

A few minutes passed til Sam's voice came over the comms. "Alright, success Director. The compound is secured."

...

"I'm not sure why, Steve, but I feel like we've been... a little off course recently." Bucky said after the debriefing.

Steve frowned. "I don't follow."

"Well, Cap, all due respect, but the whole point of the Avengers as an orginization was for it to be different from SHIELD, not a special task force of SHIELD." He shrugged. "Unless I got the memo wrong."

The others nodded. "He's right." Natasha said. "The whole reason was to keep us above board, able to do stuff like this without seeming like a hostile takeover squad."

"The team should be connected to hope, not some all-powerful orginization, you mean?" Peter interjected.

Natasha shrugged. "That actually does make sense."

"Thanks, we've been reading 1984 for school." Peter said. "It seemed a suitable connection."

Steve sighed. "You are all completely correct. However, that was the old Avengers, and the old SHIELD. As leader of both, I believe that we can operate together without causing problems. Besides," he added, "I don't want to put much more drain on the Stark Foundation. It's better used for helping other people in need, and if the Avengers can function off a SHIELD budget, that seems to make more sense to me."

Sam frowned. "Well yes... but-"

"But?" Now Steve was frowning. "Sam, do you trust me?" He looked around the table. "Do you all trust me?"

They all nodded.

"Then trust me now. Look, I'll get Agent 13 to do some press, figure out a way to up the PR level of the Avengers. Those concerns are valid. But I can assure you, nothing wrong is going to happen."

...

"And S.T.A.R.K is active. Congratulations everyone."

The bridge errupted into cheers as the Satellite Telemetry And Ray Kool shield fully activated.

Steve grinned. "The last project of Tony, now online." He said as the Avengers strolled in. "Everything good up there?"

Nat was removing the last part of her space suit. "Everything worked like charm. Carol helped with some of the positioning and the automated alert. She said, and I quote:"

"Only use it in case of emergency." Steve chuckled. "Yeah, I know."

"That means no surprise birthday parties, I reckon." Bucky grinned.

"Like you would throw anyone a birthday party."

Sam joked.

Bucky growled. "I've thrown birthday parties, Wilson."

"For who, Barnes?" Sam laughed. "Your mom!"

"Oh, you did not want to go there." Steve inhaled as Bucky tackled Sam.

"Yeah, Mr. Falcon, a yo mama joke?" Peter shook his head. "You oughta know better."

Steve chuckled and turned towards the GPS. Natasha looked over his shoulder. "What are you up to, iced americano?"

Steve barely flinched. "Nothing major. When the cosmic cube was blown up by Bucky about a year ago, it was shattered, with the shards ending up all over the map."

Natasha raised an eyebrow. "And your plan is to-"

"Retrieve them. Skull was working with stuff way above his pay grade. Whatever occurred..." Steve looked at her. "It was big. Imagine that power in the right hands."

"I'd rather that power not be in anyone's hands." Natasha said, warily.

"That's why I'm going to disintergrate the shards as I find them." He replied. "That kind of power is too much." He stared intently at the screen. "For any man."


	6. Chapter 5

"Almost a year later. Bit late to find them all, I'll admit. Still, with it 47% recovered, I'd say we're making progress, wouldn't you?" Steve asked the green behemoth standing beside him.

The Hulk scratched his head. "Sure Steve, but I'm still not sure what the purpose of assembling them are." He continued messing with the large holo display. "Even if we can succeed in repairing it, there's no garuntee it will still operate."

"It will if I tell it to." Steve replied. "Remember, this alters the fabric of reality. If I can get it to work, we could use it to fully reintegrate itself."

"...That's not generally how this stuff operates."

Steve shrugged. "Well, there's no harm in trying." He powered down the display and began walking out of the lab.

"Have you talked to the rest of the team about this?" Hulk asked, following him.

"I considered it, but you know how we were when Stark did stuff like this. And now, I see his reasoning. Maybe if we hadn't made him feel like that, Ultron would have worked, Thanos would have hit a brick wall..." Steve shook his head. "At any rate, we'll never know. Still, I can do the best I can as Director of SHIELD to keep the world safe... whatever it takes."

"That's a dangerous line of thought, pal." Hulk warned.

"Yes... but a potentially rewarding one." Steve replied. "If the earth is safe, everyone wins."

...

Steve was with his team on the ground, hoping to locate another shard. That had been sidetracked when they came under attack from some HYDRA troops.

"Didn't we take care of these guys for good a year ago, Director Captain America sir?" Asked Spidey, flipping over a militant and webbing him to another one.

"I had hoped so, but cut off one head two more takes it's place." Steve sighed. "For once, I'd hoped the head cutting was permanent."

"Clearly not." Natasha commented.

"I feel like-" Bucky kicked a guy then iced him. "I feel like we can blame this on Sam."

"Me!? What did I do!?"

"I don't know yet, but I'll think of something!"

"Sure you will Barnes, sure you will-"

"Gentlemen! Task at hand." Natasha warned.

Steve went off around a corner to ambush a bunker. After taking it out, he located what he was looking for.

"Jackpot." He grinned. There was a fine pile of Cosmic Cube shards underneath the encampment. Clearly, they had been recently discovered.

"Radio to base, we need extraction, mission is complete."

"Cap!" Nat called over the comms. "We have to stop up this encampment, we can let them have a foothold!"

Steve agreed. "Extraction incoming... then blow this place to kingdom come."

"Is that necessary, Steve?" Bucky asked, surprise evident in his voice.

"Yes, Buck." Steve replied. "We have the mission. And if these HYDRA goons escape, we'll get more. It's an infection, and we've got the firepower to take it out."

...

"COSMIC CUBE PROGRESS: 74%" The computer readout read. 

Steve noted this in his log, then pressed a comm button. "We are ready. Access go for phase one. When the sun rises, I expect all to go according to plan." He turned off the button, and walked over to a nearby window.

"Tomorrow... we save the world." He whispered, as the lab behind him powered down for the night.


	7. Chapter 6

**4 AM, Wakanda**

The border guard were the first to notice it. A large battalion of tanks were slowly rolling towards the wall. One of the guard signaled for observation, and flicked his head to let the King know there was a problem.

**4:15 AM, New York**

Doctor Strange began another incantation into the multiverse, hoping to locate the source of the disappearance of many masters of the mystic arts when he noticed a disturbance in one of his wards. It vanished without a trace, so he cleared it from his mind and continued his search.

**5:23 AM, The Lighthouse**

"What's going on?" Mack asked, wiping sleep from his eyes. "I just got to sleep 2 hours ago."

Melinda May raised an eyebrow. "A director's work is never done. We have reports of multiple bogies closing in on this and other key locations."

"What are they?"

"Unknown, Daisy's scouting that out."

Mack sighed. "Alert Director Rogers."

**5:30 AM, The Hellicarrier**

"Alright, what appears to be the full scope of the situation?" Rogers asked, sipping some coffee. "Our phones have been ringing off the hook!"

"Director, it appears to be a full scale invasion of some sort!" May yelled from the screen.

"An invasion? By who!?" Rogers asked just as the screen cut out. "This is worse than I originally thought." Striding to the loudspeaker, he called, "Attention, all agents who are aware of protocol 50A1, begin it now." Then, he pulled his Avengers ID card out of his pocket and activated it.

**5:40 AM**

"So it's an invasion, that we know." Sam said, strapping on the last of his gear. "Anything else?"

Rogers was about to shake his head, when the STARK alarm began blaring. "That's not good. Pull up the disturbance on screen!"

An image of a huge alien fleet appeared. Rogers swallowed hard. "Alright, I'm dispatching the Avengers to deal with that. We're heading to the capitol to keep the invasion at bay."

**6:00 AM, The skies above Manhattan **

"It's been a bit since an "alien invasion" was on the docket, eh?" Bucky asked, strapping in.

"No kidding." Natasha noted. "Their gonna close the STARK shield after we get past the atmosphere, so other than us and Carol, we'll be on our own."

"Hey, where's the kid?" Asked Sam.

"It's a school day and he has a biology lab." Nat stated wryly. "Besides, not sure how much use he'd be in space."

**6:00 AM, The Hellicarrier, en route to D.C.**

"Mr. President, we're on our way." Rogers said. "How are you all holding up?"

"Not good, Steve." President James Rhodes said. "I'm considering breaking out the ol War Machine."

Rogers grinned. "Hang tight, sir. Do you have a sight on the invasion force?"

Rhodes nodded grimly. "Unfortunately, I do. It appears to be... HYDRA."

**6:49 AM, In orbit**

"This is... odd." Nat said. The skys appeared clear, and there was no sign of any aliens whatsoever.

There was a zip of light, and Carol Danvers was alongside the Quinjet. "Hey girl, got the message. What's up?"

"There was supposed to be an alien invasion." Nat replied. "The STARK system picked up a large fleet."

Carol frowned. "I don't see anything. I'll make a few orbits, see if I can find anything."

A couple seconds, and she was back.

"The area is clear."

Sam frowned. "System must have had a malfunction."

Bucky recalled the invasions going on on earth. "Or there was sabotage! Natasha, we gotta get back to earth!"

Carol, hearing his voice, nodded. "I'll come with you. If something is up, it can't be good."

**7 AM, The Hellicarrier over Washington DC**

Rogers veiwed the invading force with a frown. "Do we have any reports from any other squads? Are the other under attack areas faring all right?"

An agent spoke up. "Other than Wakanda, the capitols and other strategic locations are beginning to fall."

Rogers nodded grimly. "Alright. Dispatch a squad of Quinjets to Wakanda, see if we can pick up some warriors to help out. How about Mack's team or the sorcerers?"

"No response sir."

"New Asgard?"

"Still fighting strong."

Rogers nodded. "Take up position over the White House. We're going to end this."

**7:30 AM, Space above Earth**

"Steve, come in!" Nat yelled frantically. "The shield is still up! We can't get through!"

Carol came back from punching it a bunch. "It's no use! The shield is redirecting my power!"

**7:45 AM, Wakanda **

"Reinforcements are here!" Tchalla shouted over the din of battle. The SHIELD quinjets flew into view... and began to fire on the Wakandans.

"What? FALL BACK!" Tchalla yelled as armored agents began to attempt to surround him.

**7:50 AM, Washington DC**

Several distress calls were coming to the Helicarrier, but Director Rogers wasn't there to hear them. He was in the situation room of the White House.

"According to our reports, sir, several of the main countries of the world are being overrun." A general told President Rhodes. "China, The UK, Russia, Wakanda, Australia, New Asgard... reports are coming in that they just can't handle the sheer amount."

Rhodey clenched his jaw. "Director Rogers, how goes the fight upstairs?"

"The Hellicarrier is holding them off, but we simply don't have the manpower to defeat the bulk of this army." Rogers replied.

"In that case..." Rhodey held up a key. "The other UN councilmemebers have agreed to enact protocol 77-254A, transferring world military power to the Director of SHIELD." He plugged the key into a nearby hole and turned it. "We simply can't handle an alien invasion in the skies and HYDRA on the ground."

Rogers nodded. "Understood. I'm headed topside to organize a pushback. Hopefully that can hold them off."

**7:55 AM**

**Topside Washington DC**

Rogers strode down Main Street, a battalion flanking either side, as he stared down the HYDRA army.

**In Space**

"It's no use, Carol." Natasha said. "Clearly we were trapped up here."

Sam whistled. "That does not bode well."

**Inside the White House situation room**

As he veiwed the scene on the street, something was nagging the president. Something seemed off...

_If Cap and the Avengers took care of them a few months ago, how does HYDRA suddenly have the manpower to conduct a planet-wide invasion? _He thought.

_Unless... this was their plan all along..._

"General, pull up the stats of the STARK defense system." He ordered.

The readout indicated that there was nothing amiss in the atmosphere. The shield was up, and the weapon systems hadn't been used.

"I'm going to head out now." Rhodey said carefully. "Send me the Chief of Staff." As he walked out, he transmitted a coded message to that person to be prepared to leave, and quickly.

**8:00 AM, Queens New York**

Peter yawned as he woke up. "Looks like it's time for a long—" He daw the HYDRA tanks in the streets. "Day..." Grabbing his suit, he changed into it and logged into the internet, just in time to see some live footage from Washington DC.

"HYDRA, I am here today to negotiate surrender." Rogers was saying. "Join me here, cease this attack, and help me bring into being a new era of peace!"

The HYDRA army suddenly saluted. "Hail, Commander Rogers!"

Peter would have spit out whatever he was drinking if he had been drinking something. "Um, what!?"

"With HYDRA and SHIELD together, we can bring this world into it's rightful place in the cosmos!" Rogers yelled. "Who's with me!"

"Hail HYDRA! Hail High Commander Rogers! Hail HYDRA!" Both sides were now shouting, and Rogers turned to the news camera.

"Cut it now." He said.

The screen went black.

"Uh Karen?" Peter said. "Call Ned and MJ, tell them..." His spider sense was going haywire. "I've got a bad feeling about this."


	8. Chapter 7

_Three months later_

Spidey ran as fast he could, dodging several of the darts that threatened to blast into him and knock him out. At that point, he couldn't afford that.

"Peter Benjamin Parker! Cease and desist, remove your mask, and come in peacefully!" Yelled the head HYDRA operative that was following him.

"I could do that! Or I use PARKOUR!" Leaping into an alley, he vaulted up the walls to the roof... where a helicopter was waiting for him.

"Ooooooooo that's not ideal." He noted. Narrowing his eyes, he ran at the helicopter, planning on taking it down in a single punch. Then the door opened, revealing a rather grizzled looking Clint Barton.

"Get in, kid!" He yelled.

"Getting in!" Spidey replied. He barrel jumped into the cargo bay, sticking the landing to avoid banging into the back wall.

"Shuri, get us out of here!" Clint yelled, flinging some arrows at the HYDRA enforcers who had just managed to scale the roof. As they began to pull away from the ground, he closed the door. Clint sighed. "Kid, you're a tough guy to track down."

...

"Well Captain, vat is your plan now?" Skull asked, hovering close. "It has been three months, and yet the original stratagem stalls. Why have you not yet placed HYDRA at the head of ze world!?"

Rogers sighed. He was beginning to regret freeing Skull from prison. He had no respect for law and order, only for his regime. None for the dream.

"Patience, Skull." He spoke, the softness of his voice belying the annoyance he currently felt. "All will be revealed in time. For the moment, remember that I am the Supreme Commander."

Skull noted the anger in his voice. "Yes, Supreme Commander Rogers." He snapped.

Rogers raised his eyebrow but said nothing. As he continued to sort through the various documents that were before him, one of his field agents came in.

"Hail Hydra!" He shouted, saluting.

"Hail Hydra." Rogers replied, not bothering to look. "Agent Robert, this is the third time today you've come in here. I hope for your sake that this time, it is something important."

Robert gulped. "Supreme Commander, you recall how ozone of the tech crew noted some glitches in the STARK system?"

Rogers turned around, his eyebrow somehow raising higher. "I have received no such reports."

Skull tsked. "Usually, they go through Zemo."

_Zemo. _Rogers thought. _I'll have to deal with him later. _"Very well. What's happened?"

Robert gulped again. "Yesterday morning, the Avengers managed to... break through the shield."

Rogers considered cursing, but realized that would show bad form in front of an underling. Instead, he growled. "That is... unfortunate."

"Soldier! Send a hulkbuster unit immediately!" Skull ordered. "Be sure to have the power dampeners ready, as they have likely called in Danvers—"

"Skull!" Rogers snapped. Skull immediately went to attention. "I do not need you ordering where I have not ordered." He began to stroke his chin. "Besides, that would be unwise. The masses still remain mainly ignorant about our true plan, and see the Avengers as heroes. That will have to change." He pointed at Robert. "Agent!"

Robert snapped to attention. "Yes sir?"

"Write down what I'm about to dictate." Rogers spoke.

...

"At least we're off the "biscuit in a can" that Steve likes to keep on the jet." Bucky noted, reflectively biting his burger.

"Not that your deep fried turkey jerky was any better." Sam retorted, slurping his shake.

Natasha tiredly raises her hand. "Gentlemen, please." She turned to Carol. "Any news?"

Carol, who had just been zipping around the town, shook her head. "Not that I can tell. This is a small town, only one news station."

"And only one channel on the TV." Sam added, pointing up at the screen of the diner they were currently at.

"Anything wrong with—" Bucky was in the middle of a retort when Natasha glared at him.

"Not to start another argument..." she glared knowingly at both of them, "but you'd think three months together on a quinjet would cause you guys to develop some camaraderie."

"Yeah, well—" Sam began, when Bucky tapped his shoulder. "Dude!"

Bucky pointed behind him at the TV. Sam and Nat turned around.

"Can you turn that up?" Carol asked one of the waitresses. After she obliged, none of them got any less confused.

"Director Rogers released a statement earlier regarding the Avengers." The anchor was saying. "We now have coverage from our reporter in DC."

"Thank you." The reporter said. "Director Rogers spoke from the capital earlier, where he said..."

"Director Rogers? From the capital? Steve?" Bucky asked.

"I'm calling Rhodey." Sam said, beginning to dial. Everyone else gave each other confused expressions, except for Nat, who continued to pay attention to the news broadcast. "Sam, don't press the call button. Bucky, laugh like I just told a joke."

Bucky obliged, and Carol looked at Nat strangely. "What's going on?"

"Carol, go to the women's room and take off through the back. I'll pay for the food, and we leave here in five minutes."

"Nat, what—" Sam began to ask.

"Something is very wrong." Natasha replied. "Steve gave a speech from the White House, where he called us all traitors and possible alien spies." She straightened her jacket. "I'd think it's time to get in the air at that point, don't you think?"


End file.
